Acts 17:6 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, "These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also,

NIV: But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city officials, shouting: "These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here,

NASB: When they did not find them, they began dragging Jason and some brothers before the city authorities, shouting, 'These men who have upset the world have come here also;

CSB: When they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city officials, shouting, "These men who have turned the world upside down have come here too,

NLT: Not finding them there, they dragged out Jason and some of the other believers instead and took them before the city council. 'Paul and Silas have caused trouble all over the world,' they shouted, 'and now they are here disturbing our city, too.

KJV: And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also;

NKJV: But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here too.

A team composed of Paul, Silas, and Timothy are in Thessalonica in Macedonia. As in most cities, they start by going to the synagogue and showing how Jesus fulfills the Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah. As in most cities, some of the Jews and many of the God-fearing Gentiles accept their explanation. And, as usual, some of the Jews see their words as a threat against their position and influence (Acts 17:1–5).

Paul is used to this and the persecution that follows. In Pisidian Antioch, he and Barnabas were run out of town (Acts 13:50–51). In Iconium, they were almost stoned (Acts 14:5–7). In Lystra, Paul was stoned (Acts 14:19). And in Philippi, Paul and Silas were beaten and wrongly imprisoned (Acts 16:16–24). But for the first time, Paul and his team are not around when the persecution starts; it's possible that the church is hiding them (Acts 17:10). Instead, the Jews incite a mob and attack the new converts, including their host, Jason.

It's unclear what the accusers mean by turning the world upside-down. This is only the second recorded time that Paul has been officially charged with a crime. The first was in Philippi when resentful men rightly charged that he and Silas were teaching the worship of a God—Jesus—that was not officially sanctioned by the Roman government (Acts 16:20–21). Philippi is a Roman outpost, and this is a serious charge in the Roman Empire. Thessalonica is a free city of Rome, and so the Jews use a more general charge: that they support a king other than Caesar (Acts 17:7). This is the same charge the Sanhedrin made against Jesus (John 19:12).

Acts 17:1–9 relates that Paul, Silas, and Timothy traveled to Thessalonica, having left Luke in Philippi. As usual, they start in the synagogue, showing how the prophecies of the Jewish Scriptures say the Messiah must die and rise from the dead. And as usual some of the Jews and many of the Gentiles believe them, while other Jews reject their message. For the first time, however, Paul's antagonists can't find him or his team, so they attack several converts. The new church protects Paul, Silas, and Timothy and sends them southwest to Berea.

Acts 17 describes how Paul's ministry travels down the coast of Greece. In Thessalonica, some Jews and God-fearing Gentiles believe while other Jews start a riot (Acts 17:1–9). The Bereans study the veracity of Paul's statements—until the Thessalonian Jews arrive and threaten to start another riot (Acts 17:10–15). Paul flees to Athens where the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers accept Paul's argument when he uses Greek poets to introduce God as the creator of the world, but lose interest when he mentions the resurrection from the dead (Acts 17:16–34).

Acts 17 continues Paul and Silas' travels out of Macedonia and on to Greece. The two have been through modern-day Asia minor where they picked up Timothy in Lystra and Luke in Troas (Acts 16:1–10). They have established a strong church in Philippi but were forced to leave after being falsely imprisoned (Acts 16:11–40). They now skip down the coast to Thessalonica, Berea, and Athens. From here, they will spend a considerable amount of time in Corinth before heading back to Judea and Syrian Antioch (Acts 18:1–22).

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.